A Life Well Lost
by TheFarceHunter
Summary: Maybe if I refrain from giving the story away, I'll have more readers. All I will say is that...you should take the time to read this oneshot.


Farcie's Word: Dear readers, I am a procrastinator. Kingdom Hearts 1 is giving me anger management issues, and college applications are giving me panic attacks. Time for a new fic! Woo! L'excitement! Tim Schafer owns Psychonauts and all its characters. Allusions to the sun are ALL Camus' and Bellow's fault!

A Life Well Lost

The garish sun shone with an intensity never seen before at the abandoned Thorney Towers. The asylum had long since crumbled to the ground, but the eerie energy that emanated from the remnants had never dissipated. There was nothing left but concrete dust and a headless statue to protect Sasha Nein from the suffocating heat of the sun. It weighed him down like a corpse on his back, but he knew that the minute he sat down to rest, he would never get up again. There was nothing else he could do; he had to find them at all costs. He simply had to keep moving.

"Milla! Razputin! Ford!" He cried hoarsely, his throat dry and irritated from dehydration and the concrete dust that he kicked up as he staggered along. Their names were all he could muster. Luckily, it did not take Razputin Aquato long to hear Sasha's voice.

"Sasha! I'm over here!" Agent Nein, who was fading in and out of consciousness from the dizzying harshness of the sun, jerked his head to the right, where the headless statue stood as a morose tribute to the destruction that ensued those three years ago. He lost his balance, but Raz was able to telekinetically catch his mentor as he came running to him. _Oh, crap_, the youth thought to himself as he nearly knocked into the remains of the decapitated cement figure. He stopped mid-step and held his breath. The structure stood undisturbed. Raz sighed in relief and took off running once more. Sasha, still suspended by telekinesis, was unable to focus on the ground below him. Wearily, he raised his head and squinted his eyes, and he was finally able to see the purple-haired boy sprinting towards him. Not long afterwards, the world began to spin again. "Here, drink this," Raz urged as he carefully set Sasha against a half-destroyed column and shoved a water bottle in his hands. His mentor struggled to open the water bottle with his trembling hands and took a sip. His body craved more, yet the dehydration made him too nauseous to continue. He choked and gagged, leaning away from his young prodigy as he threw up in the dusty rubble. Raz didn't seem to mind.

"Shit," Sasha grumbled as he cleaned himself off and drank more of the water. He knew he would feel awful for a day or two later, but it was necessary to hydrate himself before he passed out. As he finished off a third water bottle, Sasha was able to see clearly. He thanked the young agent, and he moved himself away from the vomit, making a face as he saw the mess. Raz laughed a little.

"Welcome back." He said as he noticed Sasha's appalled expression. The German nodded gratefully, smiling at Raz's still giggling face. He felt calmer now, which was mostly due to the water but also because his friend was so happy. Sasha could never understand why the child was such an optimist, but at that moment, he was able to appreciate it better. Sasha jerked back to the situation at hand. Milla and Ford were still missing.

"Where are Agents Vodello and Cruller? Have you seen them?" The boy shook his head. Sasha tried to stand, but he felt far too lightheaded and sat back down. W_e need to locate them. It's vital to the mission that they join us. It is virtually impossible to track our madman down without strength in numbers. _His mental plea was ignored; Raz's emerald eyes narrowed and his voice grew stern.

"They will be fine on their own. We need to get you out of here as soon as possible."

"I'm fine. I have to find-"

"No. You are staying here. I'm contacting HQ as we speak. I know you are worried about them, but really, they are fine." Sasha groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose anxiously. Raz was too stubborn for the German at times. It was strange how much Raz reminded Sasha of himself. Ever since he had met Aquato, he was impressed by his psychic prowess and determination, traits which he had as a child, along with a hot temper that took years to control. They also had in common the loss of a mother figure, an unstable childhood, and, of course, the witty Ford Cruller to guide them. To Sasha, Raz was not exactly like him. Raz was better. There was a hope that burned brightly in the boy, a hope that one day, as a Psychonaut, he could devote himself to helping others. It perplexed the German that at such a young age, he seemed to know exactly what he wanted and how he would work to get it. Sometimes Sasha thought that his youthful student didn't truly know what it was that he desired from life, but there was something in those bright, green eyes that exuded an assurance of the contrary. Raz's exuberance amused Sasha; it brought him back to the time when he, too, wanted to be a Psychonaut in only twenty-four hours. The only difference, much to his delight, was that Raz had succeeded.

"Wonderful. Just wonderful." Sasha was stupefied by the sun, which beat down on him relentlessly. It soaked through his jacket and his sweater, heating up his pale skin. He was too exhausted to take his clothing off, but Raz, sensing his mentor's discomfort, helped him remove the jacket and rolled up the sweater sleeves. The German cringed; the striped green and tan garment was damp with his sweat, and Raz's hands were unexpectedly cool.

"Why the hell do you wear sweaters in the middle of August? It's as if you _want_ to overheat and die." Raz scolded. The open air felt incredibly fresh and cool, and Sasha mopped his forehead with one of his damp, rolled-up sleeves. Feeling more coherent, he decided to mentally call out to Milla and Ford. Several minutes had passed, and neither one responded. He tried again. Nothing. Again, in desperation, he telepathically yelled for someone to answer. Raz's face did not show any worry, which caused the elder agent to lose control of himself.

"Razputin, I'm surprised that you, of all people, are not concerned for Milla's and Ford's safety. We're dealing with a volatile madman, here. He is on the Grand Head's list of top ten most dangerous individuals. They could have been captured hours ago! Why haven't you put more thought int-" The German was red in the face, both from the sun and from shouting. He could hear his voice about to break when suddenly, Raz dumped a water bottle over his head. He stopped mid-word, dumbfounded and too tired to react. This caused Aquato to burst into laughter. Sasha shook his head and chortled. "I had that coming, I know." He muttered.

"Yeah, you really did," said the boy, "I'm actually quite surprised that I had to resort to that." Their laughter died down as the juvenile amusement of the scene wore away. "Really, Sasha. Milla and Ford are okay, I swear. They are coming soon. They just shut off their mental connection so that the target can't find out where we are. Just try to relax, okay?" Sasha nodded, deciding not to argue and to give his body permission to rest. Raz's voice was calm and gentle, and it settled his nerves and stomach. His nausea soon faded afterwards. He smiled faintly, thanking Raz mentally for being so pleasant. Raz was very much like Milla; his voice had a melodic quality that drew the German's attention away from the smoldering heat. Sasha then realized that a partner was not just there for backup; a partner was everything you weren't, everything the other needed, so the individuals joined together as a perfect whole of two such parts. Sasha couldn't help but think that Raz was different. He had a balance between Milla's sensitivity and Sasha's logic that made him such a powerful individual. He was everything neither Sasha nor Milla could be. Sasha's thoughts muddled again, and the sun was still far too bright to sleep under.

"This case is impossible! I've been out here since 11 AM, and I still can't find the asshole. He took my water yesterday. I was right about to catch him, but he got away. He had too much Psitanium on him; I couldn't think straight. He wanted nothing with my body. He's the kind of nut that would run off with someone's water supply just so that he could watch him die." Sasha spat, smoothing out his soaked hair.

"Yeah, I couldn't find anything for a while, either. I tried to pry into our man's brain at 2 PM, but he has mental blocks like you wouldn't believe! It took me a while, but I finally got in without him knowing. Twenty miles past by that wall," Raz pointed to something in the distance that Sasha couldn't quite make out, "is where he's hiding all of his Psitanium, so be careful. He's all by himself, so don't worry about taking any henchmen out. He has an underground chamber right beneath that statue, where he keeps Loboto's old brain-extraction equipment. He doesn't bother to preserve the brains, like the old doc did, though. He just gets the thrill out of watching the brain shrivel up. We need backup, so Oleander will come in the jet, and he, Milla, and Agent Cruller can take care of everything. Don't worry about joining them. You have to tell them to get down there, ASAP, okay?" Sasha nodded blankly, hardy able to process the information that he was given.

"Where is your position?" The elder Psychonaut asked, now realizing that his pupil had not mentioned himself in the operation.

"I'm going to distract him so the others can get you out of here and back to catch our man." Sasha snorted.

"Razputin, I'm not an invalid. I can take care of myself." The child grinned, but this time, it was not entirely jovial.

"Apparently not." He looked behind him for some time, and Sasha wondered what he was thinking about. His face was set in concentration, his green eyes focusing on something in the distance. Raz abruptly turned back around. "Ford and Milla are coming. I've gotta go. The jet will be here in five minutes to take you back to HQ."

"Wait, where are you going? Razputin, you should wait for them. It is far too dangerous to go by yourself." Sasha called out as Raz left. The boy turned around; his eyes were watery, and there was an indescribable determination in them that Sasha had never seen before. The German was not surprised that Raz would want to go on his own, but it was entirely too hazardous. The youth nodded to Sasha, and he continued towards the madman's lair beneath the headless statue. "Raz!" Sasha began to shout in the child's direction, but the purple-haired Psychonaut kept walking. "Razputin!" Sasha screamed until he had no more air. His body failed him again, and this time, there was nothing but dust to catch him as he fell to the ground.

Sasha awoke to the sound of the jet's engine, which hummed softly in the background. His vision was blurry at first, but he could see the bright colors of Milla's short-sleeved dress. As his sight cleared, he saw Ford and Oleander as well. They all sat around Sasha's half-asleep form, their faces lined with worry. Ford was the first to realize that the German had woken up.

"Well, then. Good morning to you, Nein." Sasha sat up and ran his fingers through his hair. Milla embraced him with all of her strength. Oleander stood up straight and saluted Sasha, and he sarcastically returned the gesture with one arm, as the other was occupied with holding Milla.

"Hah, some morning. What time is it, anyways?" Sasha rubbed the bridge of his nose. He had an awful headache, and Milla's strong grip was not helping. The Brazilian read his mind and smirked sheepishly.

"Sorry, sweetie. I was just so glad you finally woke up. I was getting really worried." Milla's eyes watered, and Sasha held her gently in his arms. It did not take long for the strong, graceful woman to calm down. A year ago, Raz had coerced his mentor to admit his feelings for Milla, and it was not long before the long-time colleagues became an item. The German smirked as he remembered how nervous he was, and he couldn't help but laugh a little when he recalled how the Brazilian kissed him and said, "I thought _I_ was going to have to ask _you_, you lazy man!"

"It's quarter after three. We caught 'im, Nein, and we're bringing the bastard back to his cell!" Oleander exclaimed, his face flushing in excitement.

"Good, good," Sasha half-laughed, "but can you get me some coffee?"

"Darling, when we found you, you were seriously dehydrated. Could you at least wait until tomorrow?" Milla sighed, knowing that her partner was going to do whatever he wanted to despite her warnings.

"Oh, I'm sure it's fine, Milla. I mean, that IV has been in him for a while, now. What's a little coffee going to do?" Oleander scoffed. Sasha looked down at his arm and noticed the needle taped to his arm. He knew the short Psychonaut would get into an argument with Milla, and he decided not to respond.

"Well, if you knew anything about the body, Morceau, you would know that caffeine would just aggravate the condition."

"Vodello, don't patronize me! I-" The heated debate was cut short by a loud crash. Sasha had telekinetically knocked a large mug off a nearby table.

"Excuse me. I'm sorry to interrupt, but my head is pounding and your bickering is incredibly useless and annoying. Could someone just get me a painkiller? If not, I will get up and get one for myself." Sasha calmly remarked, rubbing his temples with his fingers. Milla took out a bottle of aspirin from her purse, poured a glass of water, and pressed two pills in his palm. He thanked her and swallowed the pills quickly, gulping down the water afterwards.

"So," Milla said reproachfully, "why did you decide not to have water at all during those three days?" Her voice grew increasingly agitated, and Sasha knew that his partner was clearly not pleased with his poor foresight. He shrugged his shoulders.

"I wasn't thirsty." The others, with the exception of Milla, found the comment hilarious. "The target…I had him. I never found him again, mind you. But in the beginning, there were traces. I was camped out for a day and a half, and then he managed to overwhelm me with his Psitanium and ran off with the water supply. He had the biggest Psitanium deposit I've ever seen; I was incoherent and couldn't fight him off." Sasha wanted to blame the sun as well, but he knew that nobody would understand. Truman Zanotto would think he was crazy, weak, or both. Oleander and Ford moved into the other room of the jet so that Sasha and Milla could have some "alone time." They shared a kiss, then resumed their discussion.

"Razputin was the one who found me. I would be dead if he hadn't given me water." Milla looked surprised. There were tears gathering in her eyes, and Sasha knew that something had gone horribly wrong.

"Oh? When was that, darling?"

"About quarter after two. He told me how he infiltrated the target's mind, found the Psitanium deposit, and reported that Loboto's old junk was being used to remove the victim's brain and let it desiccate. Did he make it out?" Milla's face had paled a bit, and a single tear slipped down her cheek.

"Sasha…That couldn't have happened. Are you sure that was when he found you?"

"Yes, of course. Why? What's wrong?"

"Sasha, we found him shortly after we came, and there was nothing we could do to-" He cut Milla off, knowing how the rest of the story would go. His heart dropped into his stomach.

"I see." Milla shook her head. Her voice quavered, and she held her companion's pale hand in her warm, tanned one.

"No sweetie, you don't. He _died_ at quarter after two."

A/N. DUN DUN DUUUUUUUHHHN! Ho, ho, ho. I hope you enjoyed that piece of crap that's even more miserable than All Is Calm. Have a lovely, lovely day.

-Farcie-

P.S. Next Generation by Spontaneous Combustion has UPDATED! is happy


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